On Sunday, the fifth edition of the much-anticipated Kundapura Kannada Habba took place in Bengaluru. Organized by Kundapra Kannada Pratishthana, it drew over 15,000 people who speak the dialect.
Kundapura Kannada (also called Kundapra Kannada or Kunda Kannada) is a distinct language variant spoken in and around Kundapur in Udupi district. Though highly localised, the increasing use of the dialect in Kannada literature, music, theatre and cinema has popularised it.
Petition to CM
The programme on Sunday was inaugurated by Shantharam Shetty Barkur, an achiever in the Kambala sport of buffalo racing popular in coastal Karnataka, along with Kiran Kumar Kodgi, MLA Kundapur, and Gururaj Shetty Gantihole, MLA Byndoor. The Chief Minister of Karnataka, Siddaramaiah also attended the event, to whom the organisers presented their demands, seeking funds for the Kundapura Kannada Study Chair at Mangaluru University.
Speaking to The Hindu, Deepak Shetty Barkur, the president of Kundapura Kannada Prathishthana, said, “We are glad that the Kundapura Kannada Study Chair has been set up at the Mangalore University. However, since its establishment, we have got no funds or grants from the State government to organise activities and events under it. We want the funds to be directed to Mangalore University at the earliest as this is a much-needed requirement for the community.”
The festival’s objective is to present Kundapura’s life and cultural abundance to the larger audience, highlighting its native language, traditions, art, sports, and diverse cuisine. By bringing together a substantial population of Kundapurians from Bengaluru. The Kundapra Kannada festival fosters unity and offers a platform for talented artistes to revive rural sports and promote cultural exchange, say the organisers of the event.
Kannada cinema stars and Kundapurians - Updendra, Yograj Bhat, Rishabh Shetty, Raj B. Shetty, and Pramod Shetty -- also participated in the event. The Kundapura Kannada Habba also had talks by academicians Rekha B. Bannadi, Upendra Shetty, and poet H. Dundiraj on the multi-dimensionality of the language. Professor A.V. Navada and renowned music director Ravi Basrur were also honored for their contributions.
“Every year the festival is a three-hour-long evening programme. However, we were lucky enough to have a full-day event this year. While 3,000-4,000 people walked into the festival in the past, this time we had about 15,000 people who participated in the event. Our focus on this year’s festival was to retain the originality of the region, for which we brought in artistes from Kundapura. Kundapura Kannada is what brings our community together breaking barriers like political inclination, caste, and religion, we hope to continue celebrating the language for many years to come,” said Mr. Barkur.
On Ashada Amavasye
Started in 2019, World Kundapura Day is observed on the day of Ashada Amavasye every year. This day holds special significance for the natives of Kundapura. Every year, accomplished artists, writers, thinkers, and commoners from home and abroad come together to celebrate their unique tongue through various art forms performed in the dialect, such as music, theatre, literature, stand-up comedy, cinema, and Yakshagana.
Kundapura Kannada is considered a variant of Halegannada (Old Kannada) by virtue of having retained some aspects of Kannada’s old usages and words. Kundapura Kannada also has a rich vocabulary and got its first-ever dictionary in 2021. The dictionary with over 10,000 words and 1,500 idioms in use in the dialect was put together by noted cartoonist Panju Gangolli and was published with support from the Tallur Family Trust.
